With over 20 years of researching and training a
variety of gaited horses, our goal is to help educate people
about mountain horse gaits. Whether you already own a mountain
horse and want to understand what gait it is performing or
are considering purchasing a mountain horse, this information
will help you get started in the right direction.

We created the following chart to help show the foot fall
pattern, timing, and what to look for. We have distributed this
information at breed demonstrations, equine expo's, and shows.
For further information,
please contact us to arrange for training, lessons, consulting, or a thorough evaluation.

The rocky mountain horse should perform
a stepping pace/amble or a rack/single-foot gait.
Learning
the timing of these gaits is critical in order to identify them
correctly. *The pace is one of the most common gaits seen
even though it is incorrect. See the animated video of
the pace below.

Pace
(click image for larger picture)

This
is a 2 beat lateral gait. Watch the front and back legs from
one side of the horse move in unison together. You will hear
only two hoof beats and the horse will sway slightly left
to right. ( 1,2 )

Stepping
Pace/Amble (click image for larger picture)"Acceptable Gait"

This
is an uneven 4 beat lateral gait. Watch the front and back
legs on one side of the horse. The front foot will land slightly
after the hind foot . You will hear four hoof beats, but each
lateral pair will be very close together. The horse will have
little to no sway. ( 1,2....3,4 )

Single-foot/Rack (click image for larger picture)"Ideal Gait"

This
is an even 4 beat square gait. Watch the front and back legs
on one side of the horse. The front foot will land after the
hind with equal timing between each foot-fall. You will hear
four evenly timed hoof beats. The horse will have little to
no sway. ( 1,2,3,4 )

Picture coming soon...

Foxtrot

This
is an uneven 4 beat diagonal gait. Watch the front and back
diagonal pair of legs. The right front will land slightly
before the left hind, then the left front lands just before
the right hind. You will hear four hoof beats, but each diagonal
pair will be very close together. ( 1...2,3...4 )

Trot(click image for larger picture)

This
is a 2 beat diagonal gait. Watch the front and back legs from
the opposite sides of the horse move in unison together. You
will hear only two hoof beats and the horse will move up and
down instead of left to right. ( 1,2 )

Factors that can affect the gait are:
improper hoof angles, a saddle that doesn't fit correctly, horse
being out of shape, rider is throwing horse off balance or giving
improper aids, and uneducated breeding (breeding pacey to pacey,
etc.). Also when a horse is pushed for speed, you will see if
they have a tendency to move towards the pace or trot, depending
on where their gait falls on the gait scale. You can help improve
the gait with proper conditioning, proper riding skills and
tack, and using a gaited horse farrier.